Variety (March 1921)

M VARIETY Friday, March 25, 1921 WITH THE MUSIC MEN (Continued from page 18) accrued royalties covering a period Urom May 17 to June 24 last. Ager alleges Jones personally guaranteed the payment of the royalties. Jones' defense generally refutes all allegations. Spirited dlsdusslon re lowering the retail price of sheet music is consuming considerable time at the recent meetJj\gn of the M. P. P, A. The ptibilsriers Individually* for a time adopted the idea of printing the maximum retail price on their issues, at 30 cents and 85 cents west of the Rockies. Soon thereafter the association members were deluged with complaints from the mid-west dealers and retailers to the effect their huge overhead considering the limited turnover necessitated selling sheet music at 85 and 40 cents against the stamped price limit of SO cents, and accordingly many publishers desisted from that prac- tice. The middle-western and far western dealer argues that the in- creased shipping expenses from the jobber to him, and the fact the syn- dicate stores (where one is located in his city) cut in, limits his pro- fits considerably, buying a hit as he docs at 20 to 22 cents per copy and selling at 30 cents. The retailer blames the publisher, the latter is in the position to con- trol the selling price of his wares; and does that by favoring the east- ern seaboard dealer with special priced issues, quick deliveries and quick turnovers, cheap transporta- tion, etc. A quarter per copy retail price is now being considered as a standard price, and it may go into effect. It means the jobber will have tc ap- portion his trade price to 15 cents or thereabouts. As yet, however, nothing final has been decided. Lew Pollock's royalty suit against Fred Fischer, Inc., .arising over •Buddha" has been adjusted with Mr, Pollock receiving a new roy- alty statement from the publisher. Pollock sued on the ground he was not paid enough royalties consider- ing his estimated popularity of the song. Lew Jacobs is now associated with the Berlin professional staff. lie was last with Feist. Johnny Black, co-writer of "Dar- dunelia* has placed his "Who'll Be The Next One'* with Goodmann & Rose Inc. The Irving Berlin Co. Is staging a national publicity stunt April 2-9 to be known as "My Mammy's Wiok.'' The Music Publishers' Associa- tion of the United States held its quarterly meeting at the Hotel As- tor lust week. Business details were discussed for the main, and the annual meeting was set for about June 15 at the same place. Milt TIagen, publicity director for the Jack Mill Music Co., has turned song writer. Neil Morct. otherwise Charles N. Daniels of the Frisco music pub- lishing house of Daniels & Wilson, Inc., has severad his connection with that company and is now signed with Waterson, Berlin & Snyder. Mr. Moret's lyric writing partner is Louis Weslyn. Hobert J. F. Schwartzenbach was awarded judgment for $10,809.61 last Week against the American Musicians' Syndicate, Inc., Earl Fuller and John II. Betz. The suit is on a $10,000 note dated Dec. 25, 1919, maturing in a year, and in- dorsed by the last Iavo named de- fendants. Joseph W. Sttrn is due to re-enter the music publishing business with- in a month. He is at present lining up a location and a professional staff. Maxwell Silver, general manager for Charles K. Harris, will sail for London May 25. , The Music Industries Chamber of Commerce convention, which is scheduled for the entire week of May 9 in Chicago, is predicted will be the biggest of its kind. A definite convention program was outlined at a meeting of the general convention committees at Chicago March 7, which will be submitted to the vari- ous associations comprising the m. I. C. C. for ratification. An assem- blage of 1,-00 is counted on. Joe Marine Joined the Irving Ber- lin, Inc., professional forces in New York litis week, __: Counsel for Harry Askt, of the Irving Berlin office, secured an order Tuesday to substitute service on lien All Haggln by nailing the summons on the door of Haggin's home, 141 Bast 19th street, after a process server had exhausted his resources to slip "the papers" to the artist for several weeks. Askt, ac- cording to the complaint drawn by Kendlar & Goldstein, hired an or- chestra for a public dinner at Dcl- monico's in December, acting on the The greatest song in song history By TED FIORITO and MARY EARL HE(_ L S PA THIS IS THE NUMBER THAT YOU HAVE BEEN HEARING PLAYED ALL OVER THE COUNTRY BUT NOT YET SUNG ON THE VAUDEVILLE STAGE. NOW IS YOUR CHANCE TO GET THE BIGGEST SONG IN THE COUNTRY TODAY. We have some great Comedy NEW YORK LOU FORDAN Professional Manager CHICAGO BILLY STONEHAM Grand Opera House Building PHILADELPHIA RENNIE. CORMACK 25 South 9th Street SAN FRANCISCO » FRANK SNOWDEN Puntages Theatre Building Instructions of Haggin. The bill, amounting: to J4 jo, was paid by Askt, who says he has looked to Haggin in vain for reimbursement. Now he wants his $420 back, but his process server docs not move in Haggin's set, and hospitality, he says, has not been extended to him at the llaggin door. By a decision handed down by Federal Judge John W. Peek in Philadelphia the Retail Music Roll Dealers' Association of Philadelphia \v;is dissolved following charges preferred against the six individuals comprising the association on Sher- man anti-trust law allegations Under the order the association is restrained from monopolizing inter- state common i in rolls and "fixing prices. Sol LeYoy lu>t week staged an amateur song writers' contest at the Harlem opera house, with Jimmy Flynn, th- Feist plugger, staying a full week at the theatre for the double purpose of cooing some of hit firm's ballads and vocalizing on an average of W songs a day written by the Harlem competitors. A $25 prize went to the winner, with $15 and $10 for runners-up. Over one hundred manuscripts were submitted on more or less trite subjects, with Martin Fried at the ivories playing fortissimo and Jimmy Flynn pick- ing up the melody in that fashion on first reading and for immediate public rendition. He did it rather efficiently, all things considering. . The T. B. Harms Co. in New York Is now representing the Chappell Music Co. of London and tho Leo Feist house has accepted the Amer- ican representation of the Francis, Day Ac Hunter catalog over here. In reciprocation, Francis, Day & Hunter will represent Feist in Eng- land, having formerly been repre- sented by Herman Darewskl. The Harms company is now operating under two names: Cliappcll-Iljrms, Inc. and T. B. Harms. The 'attcr also has a subsidiary corporation, the Victoria Music Co., publishers he ^Slai'y" score. All three or- ganizations are headed by Max and Louis Dreyfus. Eventually the T. B. Harms firm will drop the latter half of its full title T. B. Harms & Francis, Day & Hunter. Justice Davis sitting in Part XI of the Supreme Court directed judgment in favor of Elizabeth A. Reilly In her $2,600 suit against the Waterson, Berlin & Snyder Co., music publishers. A five-day trial came to a conclusion Tuesday aft- ernoon with a full award for $2,«69.12 in favor of tho plaintiff. Miss Reilly had sued on n as- signed claim of Mary Pickford, in- volving the right to use the picture actress* name and picture on the title-pages of three songs published by the W. B. S. house, titled "Daddy Long Legs," "Heart of the Hills" and "Tho Hoodlum." The three songs were supposed to have been written around tho pictures, the plaintiff alleging a guaranteed $2,500 minimum royalty on then. Th-» de- fense contended a breach of the covenants in -thai-the Broadway Music Corporation had issued an- other song titled "Dear Old Daddy Long Legs" but it was shown the latter publication was published on the authority of a member of the Pickford organization, and not Miss Pickford herself. Miss Reilly is also plaintiff in another action against Waterson, Berlin & Snyder to recover $2,000 accrued royalties on the "Heart of the Hills" end "The Hoodlum" songs, which has yet to come up for trial. E. C. Mills, executive chairman of the Music Publishers' Protective Association, has circularized a form letter to the different members of the organization Informing th.m of a practical idea which tho Jack Mills Corporation has originated us an improvement for the industry. Sidney C. Cahan, a member of the Mills organization, Is the author of the innovation which consists of a complete production record of each